Blackhawk 2012

Our annual Labor Day Blackhawk camping trip was the mark of the beginning of a very hard few months for our family.  Joseph received a complaint survey at work and he happened to get a nurse investigator that had a personal vendetta against some people at his building.  There were some valid mistakes that she found, but she gave them a brutal assessment.  Because of this Joseph missed riding in Lotoja, the 200 mile bike race he had been training all year for and he basically spent the next two months working every single day.  Many times he spent 16+ hours at work trying to get procedures in place and working to clear things up.  It was a nightmare.  Everyone at church wondered where in the world my husband had gone.

At first I didn't want to take the kids camping by myself, but then I realized that we could stay home and be miserable during labor day weekend or we could go have some fun.  We opted to go have fun.  It was cold and messy fun because of rain and cold temperatures, but it definitely was fun.  The kids had a great time getting dirty and playing with cousins and I loved visiting with my extended family.  My Aunt CarolAnn, my mom's oldest sister had just passed away unexpectedly the Sunday before, so everyone's emotions were kind of tender.  It was great to spend that time together during that hard time. 

It was such a treat for my kids to get to ride the horses.  I appreciate so much the hard work my aunts and uncles and cousins put forth to make it such a fun trip for everyone. 

We loved sitting around the fire or in our tent visiting and catching up with each other while the kids adventured. 

The boys thought that getting dirty and not having to take a bath for a few days was AWESOME!!!

Because we've lived away, my kids haven't really experienced Blackhawk.  It was fun to throw them into the mix of all the fun and funny traditions.  From the hat parade to sitting around telling stories around the campfire, I loved seeing them enjoy the things that brought me such joy during my childhood.

Emily and I stuck it out the entire time, even through inclement weather.  We had so much fun!  We were all filthy, but we had an amazing time.  At the end, one of my uncles came up to me and gave me a hug and said, "Well Amy, I'm impressed, I didn't know you had it in you."  I was impressed with myself too.  The kids and I took what could have been an awful weekend and made some great memories.  Sometimes I surprise myself too. :)

Sometimes being in the great outdoors is the best medicine anyone could ever need.